All offseason, the talk surrounding the Boston Red Sox is that they want to drastically improve the roster. They have met with Juan Soto. They have shown interest in some of the top free-agent starting pitchers. They have been active in trade conversations.

Which makes the trade speculation surrounding first baseman Triston Casas very puzzling.

To be fair, no reports have indicated that the Red Sox are shopping Casas. It’s more likely that teams are checking in on the 24-year-old first baseman in hopes that Boston would trade him. A scenario floated by Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic was that the Red Sox could trade Casas to the Seattle Mariners in exchange for one of their top starting pitchers.

If I’m the Red Sox, I don’t trade Casas. I don’t entertain it. I keep him as a long-term foundational piece in the lineup, I don’t think twice about it, and supplement the roster with veteran players while Casas continues to make around the league minimum salary — a luxury that the Red Sox will have for years to come with a plethora of young talent in or on the cusp of the majors.

Why the Red Sox can’t trade Triston Casas

Scouts view Casas as a player capable of hitting 40 homers in a season. And even after missing most of the 2024 season with an injury, he has the power and plate discipline that has many industry observers optimistic that he can reach that potential before too long.

Moving Casas would be a mistake. It would be a mistake felt in 2025 and beyond and is something that Red Sox executive Craig Breslow simply cannot do unless an opportunity too good to be true comes along.

What’s more likely is that the Red Sox will stay involved in the bidding for Soto. If they miss on Soto, which is what I anticipate, then Boston could turn its attention toward fortifying the rotation where adding one of the elite free-agent starters — Max Fried, Corbin Burnes or Blake Snell — and then trading for a player such as, say, White Sox ace Garrett Crochet could be a possibility. Another player that makes sense for the Red Sox is free-agent infielder Willy Adames.

The possibilities are endless for the Red Sox and should have everyone in and around the franchise optimistic about what’s to come. But that optimism would fade if the team trades Casas. I don’t expect it to happen — it should be considered very unlikely — but it shouldn’t even be a thought in Breslow or anyone with the Red Sox’s minds.